


it's easier than falling (in love)

by nekkie



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe - Wings, Developing Relationship, M/M, i just wanted to write a wingfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-22
Updated: 2016-03-12
Packaged: 2018-03-08 14:19:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3212294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nekkie/pseuds/nekkie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Aomine swoops in and sweeps Kise off his feet. Literally.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_“They’ve done it again! The whole world’s amazed by the talent of the Generation of Miracles, having won yet another gold medal for Japan in the International Aerial Competition. These teens have yet to lose their winning streak even up against the most experienced of fliers all around the wor-“_

Riiiiing!

Kise reaches for his phone as he turns off the television, immediately scrambling up and towards the door as the voice screams through the line.

“ Kise Ryouta! You know perfectly well that today is one of the most important shoots you’ve had in the last couple of weeks, and yet, you’re already _five_ minutes late!” His manager shrieks into his ear. “We can’t afford to have to revise your schedule yet again, especially since the photographer you’re working with after this one is _extremely_ stubborn.”

“I know, I know, don’t worry about it, Hori-san! I’m almost there,” Kise reassures her, tugging on his shoes quickly and pulling in his wings to fit through the door. “By the way, my mom’s been talking about this incredible masseuse she found, do you want me to set up an appointment for you? You’ve been sounding super tense lately…”

“You and I both know I don’t have time for massages, especially while dealing with someone like you.” _So cold_ , Kise thinks to himself. “What street are you on, so I can tell them approximately when you’ll- WAS THAT YOUR FRONT DOOR CLOSING, YOUNG MAN?! Don’t tell me you _just_ left your house! Oh dear, I’m going to have to buy an especially expensive bottle of wine as an apology...”

Wincing as his white lie of “almost there” was busted, Kise hangs up on the ranting woman, ignoring the loud ringing that sounds out almost immediately after. He waves down a cab and reads out the address his manager had texted him for the driver before settling down in his seat.

His wings are tucked behind him, but the massive things still takes up a decent amount of space and thus, he has never been too comfortable in cars. Wings were supposed to be big, but his were especially so. They caught the attention of strangers on the street, even among the sea of dozens other wings. Pure white with a few select golden feathers, they were most mesmerizing under the sun when the light made them glow and their beauty is undeniable. People often asked in awe how he got golden feathers and he’d shrug, grin, and respond, “How’d I get golden hair?”

Kise knew that he, himself, was beautiful – there was a reason he was a model, but he understood that the selling point for his popularity were his wings. In a society where wings were treated as lifelong accessories, the beauty factor for them was most important.

The car comes to a stop and Kise almost gets ready to step outside of the cab when he realizes it was only a red light. He checks the time, huffing in impatience. Hori-san’s loud scolding could already be heard. He sighs longingly as another thought passed through his mind.

_I wish I could fly; I’d get there so much faster._

There was a reason why wings were mostly only treated as accessories – the majority of the population couldn’t figure out how to make them work. Multiple scientists had conducted experiments observing flight in birds, but it just came down to the fact that human anatomy was different. After countless reckless people tried to fly and ended up taking their life not knowing how to land, losing control, etc., flying was determined dangerous and a crazy thing to attempt.

However, there were definitely those that have succeeded. Most of them were situated in America, but several others were sprinkled all across the world. They were all well known for having achieved what could only be a dream to everyone else, and every year, they would gather for races through the air in the International Aerial Competition. The most notable of fliers recently had risen from Japan, a group of teens given the title the Generation of Miracles. Because flying was a miracle, something unexplainable, so when asked how one master flying, they’d shrug, grin, and respond, “How does one master breathing?”

Kise spends the rest of the car ride thinking of the silhouettes he’d seen barrelling across the sky on the TV earlier, the cameraman struggling to follow their movements from the ground. Briefly, he wonders about how they’d learned, when they’d learned, and most importantly, what it felt like. He doesn’t have much time to ponder these things though, because soon enough, the car door to his right is flung open, manicured nails dig into his ear, and yank him out the vehicle. 

“Ow, ow, Hori-saaaan, that hurts!” He whines, his wings fluttering in irritation. The infuriated woman in front of him doesn’t loosen her grip, her wings sticking out in anger and the ringing clicks of her heels sounding out as she marches towards the building, dragging Kise with her.

“Fifteen minutes late. Fifteen! You’ll be lucky if this company doesn’t spread word about you being a terrible model to work with,” she finally lets go and Kise takes a moment to pause and rub his aching ear, until Hori snaps her head back to glare at him. “Would you hurry up? Time is crucial with these shoots, especially since we have to rush to the next one!”

The blond gives her a look of apology (playing up his puppy eyes), before he gasps, “Ah, I haven’t even paid the driver yet!” They both look back to see a man pointing an accusing finger at them, screaming vulgarities. His manager sighs and pinches her nose bridge and Kise really does feel bad about how much she has to deal with on a daily basis.

“You go on ahead, 8th floor. I’ll go pay him,” she says, stalking off and leaving him to enter the building by himself.

When he arrives at the photoshoot, relieved voices greet him and he feeds them multiple apologies, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. A few charming smiles and jokes later, the issue of his tardiness is smoothed over and he’s seated in a chair while people get to work on his makeup and hair. Kise makes a mental note to tell Hori not to bother with the expensive wine.

\---

The photoshoot ends up going perfectly and even though she didn’t say it, Kise knows Hori was proud of him. The one after that produces the same results and Kise is set free to do as he likes for the rest of the day with a reminder to watch his diet and get enough sleep.

Technically, he isn’t supposed to (and he is perfectly aware of this), but in the sweltering heat, Kise finds himself buying a popsicle on his way home. Once again, he’s struck with the thought: _I wish I could fly._ It must feel nice to glide with the wind coursing through his feathers and leave the busy city-life underneath him and surely it would do a better job at cooling him down than the sticky, melting treat in his hand.

His thoughts are interrupted as a group of girls recognize who he is and crowds around him, asking for pictures and autographs and if maybe he could give them a kiss on the cheek each and to please accept this chocolate they were attempting to shove into his arms, despite him trying his best to hold onto his popsicle.

What happens next is a blur, because Kise sees a flash of blue, feels a strong gust of wind, and he’s suddenly on his butt with chocolate littered around him and the popsicle no longer in his hand. The girls shriek and shove at each other to be the one to offer a hand to help him up, but Kise’s attention isn’t on them right now. He stares up at what the source of his fall had been and staring back at him is a guy with striking blue hair and tanned skin and, most importantly, on his back were a pair of jet black wings that hinted to be the same colour as his hair under the sun and _he’s flying with them._

By now, people have stopped in their tracks to look up at the boy in awe and wonder, but the flier still hasn’t broken his eye contact with Kise and Kise suddenly realizes that the guy’s clutching onto his popsicle. He feels his face go into a pout, puffing out his cheeks. That popsicle had been a guilty treat for himself. It’d been ages since he had one and what made this guy think he could go around stealing other people’s food?!

The other smirks down at him and takes a bite with laughing eyes and in the next second, he’s zipping off before Kise could say a word. Kise contemplates shouting after him, but he finds himself speechless as he watches those dark wings move against the wind and stretch out to an incredible length, casting shadows on the road below. He’s struck with how the flier moves so gracefully and naturally like it took no effort, like his rightful place is in the sky and to say the least, it’s beautiful.

When he comes to his senses, he’s still on the ground and grins at his worried fans. He stands up, dusting himself off. He gives them what they asked, save for the kisses, and proceeds home with a pile of chocolates he will end up giving to his mother and sisters.

All the while, he thinks about the guy in the air and an image surfaces of two boys grinning side by side, identical medals hanging by their neck.

_“Tune in at 6pm for an interview with the speedy duo Kagami Taiga and Aomine Daiki. Some say it’s like they fly at the speed of light!”_

Aomine Daiki. Kise remembers now, the guy’s flying had already blown him away once just this morning in front of the television – he’d been the reason Kise was late. There’s the urge to fly again, but this time it’s different. It’s not a fleeting thought, as it had been in the past, a dream to never be acted upon, like when kids think about wanting to be rich and famous and own a fancy car. He knows attempting it is risky, he knows he already has a good life with a great career to lead him onto an even better life, but that pair of black wings sparks something in him. The desire to fly as the blue-haired, smirking popsicle thief had done is burning inside him and Kise feels it in every inch of his body and his own wings rustles in excitement.

_Ah, I really, really want to fly._

\---

At the same time on a rooftop of some random building, Aomine lounges on his back, gnawing at the popsicle stick in his mouth. He grunts in annoyance and flips on his side when he hears heavy footsteps landing beside him and the loud voice accompanying it.

“Ahomine! You said you wanted a race and all of sudden, you’re swooping down and knocking some kid on his ass and why the fuck did you even bother stealing a half eaten popsicle?”

“He had a bunch of girls after his dick, it annoyed me,” Aomine drawls in response, flicking the popsicle stick at Kagami’s face, watching in amusement as the redhead flushed deeper in anger. “Chill, it’s not a big deal.”

“It’s a big deal when we’re worldwide celebrities and you might earn the reputation of being a thief bullying random people on the streets,” Kagami grumbles, plopping down beside his friend. “You know Momoi will flip her shit if that happens, and probably a few of the other guys too.”

“Tch,” Aomine clicks his tongue and shuts his eyes, curling his wings around to block the sun from his face. Kagami, having known this guy for years, understands that as: “shut up about whatever it is you’re saying ‘cause I don’t give a damn and also I want to sleep”. Or something along those lines. And so, he leaves Aomine alone, mumbling something about paying Kuroko a visit.

After a while, Aomine peeks open one eye just to make sure Kagami’s really gone before trying to settle into a more comfortable position. Something keeps poking him in the back and he pulls it out from under him to find the abandoned popsicle stick. He shoves it in his pocket and lays back down. The crazy girls were only part of the reason for his choice in victim and the other part had been the dude’s wings. It’s not like he doesn’t know whom he stole the popsicle from. He’s seen that exact pair of wings in many magazine covers before and Aomine’s not that cut off from recent media to not know about the country’s “Golden Boy”, Kise Ryouta.

It’s just that seeing the shimmering golden feathers matched with the strands of hair on Kise’s head was a completely different sight in person and he’d just wanted to take a closer look. The popsicle had only been a bonus.

\---

It’s the weekend. It’s also the first time Hori’s offered Kise a day-off in a long while, so he abandons the stack of homework on his desk and answers Kasamatsu’s invite to coffee with a: （ﾉ´д｀）Sorry, Kasamatsu-senpai, I’m busy today, but I’ll make it up to you I promise!!!! d=(´▽｀)=b

He pockets his phone and dashes out the door before his mom can ask any questions and his sisters stop him for fashion advice. His destination is a secluded park where he knows he can be alone, close enough to his home that he could walk. Kise gets there in no time and lets his bag fall to the ground as he heads for an area less crowded with trees.

He’d come to this park with only one motive in mind and that was to learn to fly. He stands there nervously for a few seconds, taking deep breaths and testing out his wings, taking comfort in the fact that he was a quick learner. Spreading out his wings, Kise replays Aomine’s movements in his head. He stayed up late the night prior to study countless videos of the International Aerial Competition champion. His eyes narrow in concentration and his wings flap slowly, hesitantly, the wind created rustling through the grass. He feels himself lift off the ground and he isn’t ready for it. He loses concentration, his arms and legs flailing and his wings still in panic and he pitches backwards, falling to the ground.

He stays on his back for a couple of minutes, regaining the breath that’d gotten knocked out of him. When he rises and dusts himself off, Kise finds himself smiling from ear to ear because yes, he aches and yes, it’s hard, but the challenge is fun and he can only imagine what it would feel like when he masters it.

Kise stays in the park until the sun sets and his stomach growls in protest. Bruises and cuts are littered across his body, something his manager won’t let him hear the end about when she finds out but he’ll cry that he at least protected his face.

Atop a tree, hidden among leaves, navy eyes shine with interest, following Kise as he gathers his stuff and makes his way home. Aomine scoffs at how the blond was practically radiating with happiness, but he understands the high that comes with flying. And yeah, as much as he hates to admit it, it was a little heart warming to watch the guy try so hard and succeed. Though the best parts had to be Kise’s face when he would realize he was dropping out of the air, Aomine snickers, twirling a wooden popsicle stick between long fingers. Well, show’s over, he flies down from the tree. Time to go back to a shrieking Satsuki.

When Kise arrives home, his mother pulls him into a hug before swiftly slapping him on the back of his head.

“Ouch, I’m already aching everywhere else!” He whimpers and his mom frowns, having long been immune to his kicked puppy antics.

“That’s what you get for coming home at this hour! And why are you covered in dirt? Are these _bruises_ , Ryouta, you’re a _model_...”

He doesn’t hear his mom’s fussing – it’s in one ear and out the other - because he remembers the big news he has to share with her. “Mom, guess what?” He clings onto his mother’s arm excitedly, eager to reveal his newly found ability. “I can _fly_!”

Seconds pass like hours as Kise’s mom stares at him before shaking her head. She orders him to go take a bath and sleep and if he still thinks that in the morning, then he’d better be ready to prove it to her. She gives him another light slap in the head for attempting something so dangerous.

He does as he’s told and in the morning, with his sisters present due to curiosity, he experiences the thrilling, exhilarating, electrifying and irreplaceable feeling of flight again. His mother cries and his sisters suffocates him in hugs.

“You’re a miracle, Ryouta.”

He grins and helps her dry her eyes.

\---

A knock comes the following day when he’s about to head to school and he opens the door to reveal a busty girl with coral hair and beside her a less-endowed brunette.

“I’m Momoi Satsuki,” she says, as if Kise doesn’t already know that.

“Aida Riko,” the other girl pipes up. He knows that too.

“Kise Ryouta,” he shakes each of their hands. “Come in!”

They excuse themselves and as he leads them to the living room, pink eyes roam over to the bag he’d set down at the entrance.

“I’m sorry, were you about to go to class?” Momoi asks worriedly, “Should we come back at a later time?”

He shakes his head and sends her a reassuring smile. “Missing one day won’t do any harm,” It’s actually a blessing because the pile of homework he’d received was ditched in favour of stocking up knowledge about flying.

“Well, if what we came here for today goes as planned, you won’t have to go back to school ever again,” Aida adds on, peaking Kise’s curiosity.

“Can you tell me what exactly you came here for then? Ah… I mean, it’s not every day two representatives for the Generation of Miracles arrive at my front door, y’know,” he laughs.

“We heard from a source that you could fly, Kise-san,” the tone in Momoi’s voice completely changes the atmosphere of the room into a serious one.

“To get straight to the point, what we’re asking here is for you to join our team for competing in the International Aerial Competition,” Aida’s staring Kise down, as well as Momoi and he feels himself stop breathing and his voice catches in his throat and his mind is turning gears so fast to try and process what they’d just asked of him.

“Yes! I’d be honoured!” He manages out, eyes shining. The two girls look amused at his excitement.

“It’s not that fast, of course,” Momoi says, getting up from the couch. “We need to see if everyone else agrees to recruiting you. Contrary to what everybody thinks, it’s not only the Miracles that can fly in Japan. We’ve had a certain flier join us before, who ended up causing too many problems and he was kicked out.”

“Haizaki Shougo, right?” Kise’d studied some of his races. His style was rough and though he was fast, it looked choppy and violent, unlike Aomine’s.

Momoi nods, looking a little uncomfortable when the name’s mentioned and Aida swiftly switches the subject.

“Also, we’d need a guardian to agree, since you are underage. But first, let’s go check if you get along with everyone!”

Before he knows it, he’s in a limo heading to the training grounds of the Generation of Miracles – Japan’s famous fliers. Aside from seeing them on television and that chance encounter with Aomine involving the popsicle, he’s never seen them and despite Kise’s undeniable people skills, his palms still clam up as he wonders exactly what type of people they are.

\---

The first building they enter upon arrival is easily one of the smaller ones at the training grounds. Inside, it looks almost like a doctor’s office with clean floors and walls and minimal decoration. There are medical supplies lying around on counters and stored in cabinets, but what stands out the most is the guy sitting on a stool in the middle of the room, hunched over and shirtless with his wings spread out. They’re black with red streaks, matching his fiery hair and unruly eyebrows.

“Hey,” He greets them and looks up, immediately focusing his gaze on Kise. “Who’s that?”

“Kagami-kun, please refrain from being rude,” a voice sounds from behind Kagami, shocking Kise because the other person is completely covered by Kagami’s naturally giant size and large wingspan.

“I wasn’t! I just asked who he was!” The redhead splutters, turning around to glare at whoever’s behind him. Kise manages to catch a glimpse of fluffy blue hair before the figure steps to the side to reveal matching wide eyes.

“And please don’t move either, I don’t want to accidentally pluck out one of your feathers. Also, I find it very unusual you can’t recognize Kise Ryouta.”

“You know I don’t pay attention to that crap…”

Momoi coughs politely and cuts in, “as Tetsu-kun already mentioned, this is Kise. And currently, he’s a possible recruit.”

“Kuroko Tetsuya,” the smaller guy walks forward to shake Kise’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too!” Kise chirps, giving Kuroko a once-over. Briefly, he wonders how this guy can possibly be working with the Generation of Miracles, because he’s never come across his name in his research and overall, Kuroko just seems… underwhelming.

Kagami rises from his stool and the height difference between him and Kuroko is even more obvious now. “Kagami Taiga,” they shake hands and Kagami looks away with tinted cheeks. “S-sorry if I was being rude earlier.” Kise almost wants to giggle because this guy is getting embarrassed about apologizing and it’s pretty cute. He feels his shoulders relax, because maybe the Generation of Miracles really aren’t intimidating in the slightest.

“This building is like… the medic center – I suppose you could call it that,” Aida says, once the introductions are out of the way. “Kuroko here is one of our two specialists that reside here.”

“Two?” Kise asks, looking around for the other.

“I would be the second,” a young man enters from a door in the back, with brown hair and gentle eyes and a pair of extremely long coffee wings. “Kiyoshi Teppei, pleasure to meet you!” Kise returns the sentiment.

“Any problems, Kuroko?” Kiyoshi turns to his partner, who shakes his head.

“Nothing to be concerned with. Kagami-kun is in top shape.”

“Kuroko was just checking over the condition of Kagami’s wings – they’re very fragile things,” Kiyoshi explains to Kise, and he swears his smile seems a little sad. “Especially around the area where the wing connects, the tissue and bone are easily damaged. If you were to join us, you’d have to visit here atleast once a week for a check-up. Kagami here just seems to be in here more often than he needs to be…” He chuckles as Kagami’s face flushes.

“Oi, I’m just trying to be cautious!”

“Kagami-kun is never very cautious about things.”

Kiyoshi claps his hands together. “Right! So I think Riko and Momoi have much more to show you, so…”

“Mhm, this is only our first stop,” Momoi nods in agreement and starts to walk out with Aida. “Thank you, Kiyoshi, Tetsu-kun!”

“Anytime! See you around, Kise!” Kiyoshi smiles after them and Kise waves to the three as he follows the two ladies out.

As they’re walking, a silence falls over them before Aida breaks it.

“Kiyoshi used to fly for Japan in the I.A.C.” she says.

Kise makes a sound of disbelief. “Eh?! Really? But he’s still so young… Why’d he stop?”

“It’s not a surprise you didn’t notice… He’s better at hiding it now. One of his wings is immobile.” Kise glances over at Aida and notices her staring at the ground as she walks. Momoi looks at her sympathetically. “He didn’t want to burden anyone, so he didn’t mention it until everyone suspected an injury. By then, it was too late to do much about it. That’s why he does what he does now; he wants to prevent what happened to him from happening to anyone else.”

Kise doesn’t know what to say to that. He moves to comfort Aida, but he catches Momoi’s eye as she shakes her head at him. He lets his arms hang back at his sides and the silence envelop them once again – despite the fact that some part of him is still bursting in excitement at the idea of where he is. Kise realizes everyone here has a story and that he wants to learn them all. He’s starting to think what he’ll enjoy most at this place – aside from flying – will be the people. 

(Of course, he hasn’t met everyone yet).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pssst. did u guys catch the pun. "its like they fly at the speed of light" get it. Lights. Aomine + Kagami. Im a genius
> 
> anyway!! this is the first time i'm writing aokise and it's like super nerve wracking like damn. i hope i'll be able to do it well and if not, at least decently. its all in honour of s3 Hell YEah. 
> 
> thank u for reading!! tumblr: http://sousuckit.tumblr.com
> 
> fun fact: when i told one of my friends i was writing an aokise wing fic she thought i meant chicken wing fic so i think next on the list is a fic where aokise just eat chicken wings the whole time. whos down


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kise meets everyone and catches up with Kasamatsu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just want to note that akashi's personality in this fic will coincide with his personality after the match with rakuzan, where his two personalities are now working together in his body. or something.

Kise spends the rest of the day following Aida and Momoi through the twists and turns of the training facility. There are many daunting machines and buildings they skip over that Kise couldn’t help but pry about, though the answer stayed the same: that he will learn about them all in due time - especially since he still wasn’t an “official” flier with the Generation of Miracles yet. 

The second Miracle he meets sports a pair of moss coloured wings along with his standoffish attitude. Kise gives him the standard “Golden Boy” smile and receives the most condescending glasses push of his life in return. Despite the unapproachable air to him, Midorima Shintarou is still routinely polite with a short handshake as he introduces himself. Based on first impression, Kise draws upon the conclusion that he should most definitely be intimidated by this guy. And normally, he would be - if not for one detail begging for his attention from the palm of Midorima’s bandaged left hand. 

“If you don’t mind me asking… What’s the frog sculpture for?” Kise asks, a giggle threatening to burst from his lips.

“It’s the Oha Asa’s lucky item of the day for Cancers,” Midorima sends him a deadpan stare. “Maybe I should have gotten a bigger one, because it doesn’t seem to have helped my luck with the important stranger my horoscope said I would meet today.” 

Brushing off the subtle insult, Kise nods in feigned understanding and the girls step in to the conversation with some idle small talk for Midorima before he calmly excuses himself. Despite his oddities, Kise still respects the flier for the long distance endurance races he’s known for. He finishes his tour of the residence area and then the three of them move on to the dining area. 

Upon entering the cafeteria, Kise is presented with the sight of an extremely tall man, whom he recognizes as Murasakibara Atsushi, devouring packet after packet of junk food. Kise glances at the amethyst wings and suspects the whole unusually coloured feathers and hair combo to be a trend among the Generation of Miracles. It’s strange he never noticed before, but admittedly, he paid significantly more attention to Aomine’s races in the I.A.C. than the others’. However, he does know that Murasakibara’s known for having the widest wingspan of the team and using their power to his advantage during particular windy races. 

“Shouldn’t fliers have a healthy diet while in training?” Kise asks his tour guides. Momoi laughs airily, while Aida grimaces - nodding. 

“They’re supposed to. However, it’s extremely hard to motivate Murasakibara that without the promise of snacks - it’d be practically impossible.” 

There are a lot of small things about each member that are withheld from the public, Kise realizes. It’s within reason too - for he has experienced firsthand how learning them can ruin the cool image fronted by the Generation of Miracles. 

Murasakibara glances up at them when they approach, lifting his cheek from where it had been resting against his palm lazily. “Sa-chin, what’s a model doing here?” 

Momoi explains, for the third time, the reason for Kise’s presence. From Kise’s personal observation, he thinks Murasakibara had tuned her out halfway through. To catch his attention again, Kise puts extra pep in his introduction, but is interrupted when someone else swings the cafeteria door open.

Fair-skinned with black hair covering one eye, the guy immediately strikes Kise as familiar though he’s not able to pinpoint exactly who he is. 

“Hi Muro-chin,” Murasakibara greets him.

“Oh, sorry.” ‘Muro-chin’ has a smooth voice, his apologetic smile also charming. Kise determines that the modelling industry would love to have someone like him. Maybe that’s where he’s seen him? “Did I walk in on something important?”

Aida and Momoi both shake their head. “We were just introducing Kise here, who may be joining the GoM in the IAC in the future,” Aida explains. 

“Ah, Kise Ryouta, right?” It’s not really said as a question. “Never thought I’d see you here, but I’m honoured nonetheless. I’m Himuro Tatsuya.”

Kise accepts the outstretched hand, finally recognizing who Himuro is now that he has the name. “Oh! You’ve competed in the IAC too, haven’t you?” 

“Yeah, in the past I flew in a few races.” Himuro shrugs casually, though he’s avoiding eye contact now. “I would love to stay and chat, but I have to get Atsushi to training now.” 

“Training’s a pain… I’d win anyway…” Murasakibara mutters, but starts to collect his remaining snacks in his arms as he stands. Himuro keeps his smile and is the one to wave goodbye when the pair leaves the cafeteria. 

“Himuro’s Murasakibara’s personal trainer. Each of the Miracles have one - usually a past IAC flier,” Aida explains on the walk to their next destination. 

“Himuro’s even younger than Kiyoshi though!” Did Himuro suffer from an injury too? Is that why he looked uncomfortable to Kise when his IAC history was brought up? 

“Yeah…” Aida and Momoi share a glance; the latter is the one to continue.

“He was one of the better fliers for Japan before the GoM were discovered. He thought he would be able to gain recognition for Japan in the competitive flying scene and worked really hard. But, soon after, the GoM entered the picture and Himuro fell behind in terms of natural talent.” She smiles sadly, “he was really frustrated, but we were convinced he could still make a difference by applying what he’d learned while he was improving himself to other people.”

“So he was hired as a personal trainer?” 

Aida nods. “It took persuading, but eventually Himuro agreed. He was originally Kagami’s, but later requested to be assigned to Murasakibara since his old trainer couldn’t handle him. Himuro was determined to turn Murasakibara’s attitude around, unable to see full potential not being reached.” 

“He sounds like a fascinating guy… Good-looking, too! I thought he was also a model. I’m sure at least one of you have tried to seduce him?” Kise says innocently, unable to resist. He earns a violent blush from both with an equally violent slap to the arm courtesy of Aida while Momoi argues that they keep it very professional around here!

Nevertheless, the trio is in high spirits when they near the next building (revealed to Kise to be the ‘educational institution’ because, after all, the GoM are still high school students that needed to finish their diplomas somehow). Kise whines about how Aida had promised he didn’t have to go to school again once he joins the GoM and she smirks, replying that technically, this didn’t count as one.

Kise fails to see how it didn’t. As they snaked through the “not-school”, he warily notes the layout to be almost identical to the actual one he had attended until today - albeit much smaller. There are only a few different classrooms and each housed only about ten desks or so. Kise wonders aloud if the GoM all took classes together and Momoi confirms that they do - along with Kuroko, who turns out is the same age. 

They reach the entrance of the library when Momoi murmurs: “he’ll probably be in there”, to which Aida nods.

The doors are pushed open and the person Momoi had been referring to turns out to be Akashi Seijuro, seated at a table in front of a shogi board. He was the labelled “captain” of the Generation of Miracles, though such a position was not officially recognized because flying was hardly a team sport. However, Akashi often acted as the spokesperson on behalf of the group during public appearances - the one to shoot down rumours, the one to smooth over whatever scandal Aomine is caught in, and so on. 

They watch in silence as he moves a piece before rising to his feet, stretching out scarlet wings and strolling over. “Ah, Kise Ryouta. Thank you for bringing him, Momoi, Aida,” he nods at the two, before turning his attention back to the blond. “I was informed you would possibly be flying alongside us in the International Aerial Competition, Kise. But first, I’m Akashi Seijuro.” 

They shake hands and Kise nods, in awe by the presence the other held despite a smaller stature. 

“Tell me, how’d you discover you could fly?” Akashi questions, face unreadable. 

“Ah, well, I’ve always wanted to fly - I mean, who doesn’t right?” Kise grins sheepishly. “But someone inspired me and I just knew I really needed to give it a chance - even if I died trying.” 

“Aomine Daiki,” Akashi states and Kise feels himself nodding again. “He happens to be the one who brought you into our attention.” 

“What? Really?” He blurts out in disbelief. Up until now, he’d forgotten that Momoi had mentioned a source informing them of his ability to fly. Overcome with excitement, he hadn’t questioned it in the moment, but now that he’s found out it’s Aomine… How could he have possibly known? 

Akashi ignores the reaction from Kise and continues on calmly. “I trust the judgement of the other Miracles. I’ll approve of you training alongside us and being branded as part of the Generation of Miracles,” he says. “Of course, the spot isn’t permanent yet - especially if you fail to meet our expectations.” 

Turning to head back to his table, Akashi looks back once to deliver his final message. “I hope you don’t disappoint us, Kise… The Generation of Miracles aren’t accustomed to earning anything but gold.” 

Kise can read a situation enough to know a reply wasn’t expected (at least, not in words) and he exits the library with an amplified desire to prove himself along with heightened respect for Akashi Seijuro.  
A couple minutes later, they conclude the tour and Aida leaves them promptly after, saying she had an appointment to attend to and that she wishes Kise luck - though she’s sure she’ll see him very soon. Kise looks after her retreating figure and is unable to shake the feeling that the tour is unfinished for he hasn’t been introduced to someone he’d been looking forward to meeting the most.

“You want to meet Aomine, don’t you?” Kise glances over to see Momoi’s knowing smile directed at him. He returns it, silently giving her props for being much more attentive than he’d ever expected. 

“Come this way,” she nods her head towards the residential building. “He’s never on the lot except for sleep and his scheduled training sessions. Even for those, he’s late quite often. It drives his trainer, Imayoshi, crazy. I’ll call him to meet us.”

Momoi leads him to the residential building again and they settle into the luxurious and unsurprisingly comfortable couches. Kise rolls his neck and lets himself relax as pillows engulf him while Momoi pulls out her phone. 

“Dai-chan, I need you to meet someone back here. No, this can’t wait. I think you know who it is,” there’s a pause before she smirks triumphantly. “We’re waiting in the lounge!” 

As she tucks her phone back in her purse, Kise quirks an eyebrow at her. 

“Are you two close?” He asks, referring to the nickname. Momoi blinks at him for a second and laughs.

“Oh, we grew up together! I actually followed him here when he was scouted to keep him in check,” she smiles fondly. “The nickname just slipped, sorry. It’s a habit that I kept mostly because he used to hate it so much. Publicly, I try to stay professional though. Our closeness can be easily misinterpreted and stir up the press.” 

Kise nods in understanding and grins back at her. “Wow! Childhood friends, huh? How was it growing up alongside Aomine Daiki?”

“Oooh, I have so many stories,” Momoi says with a mischievous glint in her eye.

When Aomine finally walks in, Kise’s in tears from laughter with Momoi recounting a memory of Aomine trying to force her to kiss a crayfish to meet her prince after the same attempt with a frog had failed. 

“Yo, Satsuki, are you telling people that frog story again?” 

Kise follows the gruff voice and takes in the same navy eyes that had stared down at him a few days ago. They’re narrowed in annoyance, but light up in recognition as they land on Kise. 

“Hey, it’s you,” Aomine gives him a smirk that sets his heartbeat five paces faster. Kise tries his hardest to ignore it.

“Nice to see you again, too!” He beams, standing and holding his hand out in greeting. “I’m Kise Ryouta!” 

“You know who I am,” Aomine says in return, taking his hand out of his pocket to return the handshake but what Kise feels against his palm is not the calloused skin he was expecting. He drops the item in panic, afraid of it being a prank. 

“What was that?!” He demands over the sound of Aomine chuckling, who is now bending down to pick up the fallen object.

“I was just returning something I borrowed,” Aomine straightens up, holding a popsicle stick in his hand. Kise eyes it in confusion, torn between being mildly disgusted and laughing.

“Why do you still have that?” 

Aomine shrugs and brushes on the question, already turning his back to Kise, who can’t help but note just how cool the other’s wings really are. “See ya later, Kise.” 

He makes his way to the door, flicking Momoi’s forehead playfully along the way. She yelps in protest, hands flying to the offended area and glares after him.

“Don’t miss training again!” She yells.

“Yeah, whatever,” Aomine drawls in response, pinky finger stuck in his ear. Kise watches the door close behind him and feels his growing interest towards the flier increase even more. 

It’s only in the cab ride home that he realizes that with how brief the meeting had been, he’d completely forgotten to ask Aomine how he’d known he could fly. 

\----

His mother takes the news exceptionally well, having long come to terms that her son is set out to do amazing things. She promises to handle the school situation for him and Kise passes out on his bed that night, feeling exhausted from the information he’d taken in during the day.

The following morning, he receives an email from Momoi with details of paperwork and what needed to be done for him to join the Generation of Miracles. He gets halfway through the email before he remembers there was still someone else that needed to know of this new development in his life right away. Kise dials his manager’s number and she picks up after two rings. 

“Kise? What is it? Is there a problem regarding your 4 o’clock shoot?” Hori’s concerned voice reaches his ears and Kise can’t help but feel a little guilty regarding the news he’s about to deliver. 

“Ah… Actually, I won’t be able to make it to that shoot..” 

“Why’s that? Do you want me to try and reschedule it?”

“No, that’s okay,” he gulps and runs a tongue over his lips in nervousness. “I, ah… I won’t be modelling anymore.” 

He hears something crash to the floor on the other line (presumably Hori’s early morning wine) and he winces, holding the phone farther away from his ear as he anticipates furious shouting. However, when she finally responds, it’s quiet and Kise has to bring the device back against his head.

“Kise… Is everything alright?” She sounds genuinely worried and Kise feels his heart drop at the thought that he would no longer be working with someone that had become a guardian figure in his life ever since she picked him out from the crowd four years ago. “What’s the reason behind this?”

“Don’t worry so much, Hori-san, that frown will give you wrinkles,” Kise chuckles softly, ignoring the prick of tears at the corners of his eyes. “I’ve just found something else that I want to do more. Even if I loved modelling, I won’t have the time for it.” 

“What are you talking about?”

“Are you busy? It’s kind of a long story…” 

“I can definitely make time to hear why one of my favourite clients is leaving me.”

Kise takes a deep breath and begins the story from the top. He leaves out the bit about his admiration for Aomine, seeing it as a personal inspiration to hold on to. Hori stays quiet throughout the time he talks and by the end of him talking about how he already has the paperwork to join the Generation of Miracles and the reality of it all is still having trouble settling inside him, Kise’s throat is parched. He takes a swig of water as a long pause ensues and he has to check if the signal hadn’t dropped or something.

“Kise...” Hori starts hesitantly. “Do you still have a passion for modelling?”  
He’s taken aback, not expecting the response at all. 

“Of course,” he says, puzzled. 

“Then I fail to see why you need to stop completely.” Her voice is firm. “I know it won’t be as often as you are doing it now, but a few shoots here and there is definitely possible.” 

Kise almost laughs - so full of relief. He feels foolish for thinking there wouldn’t be a way to combine the worlds of modelling and flying together. 

“Really? You’d do that for me?” He’s grinning ear to ear now. 

“You’re completely out of your mind if you think I would let the Golden Boy that _I_ made into a star just slip from my grasp so easily.” Kise can practically hear the eye-roll. “Goodness, you were making this all so _dramatic_ , I was scared for a minute.” 

Giggling, Kise practically sings into the phone, “you know I make sure a moment with me is never boring, Hori-san!” 

“Oh, be quiet. Anyway, I’ll cancel everything we have planned in the meantime and we’ll do an official announcement of your withdrawal from a full-time modelling career tomorrow.”

Kise sighs in contentment and gratefulness towards his manager. 

“Thank you so much.” 

“It’s my job.”

She hangs up on him, but he knows she was smiling too on the other end of the line. The good news of not having to break off his work with Hori spurs him on as he organizes all the paperwork and meets with Momoi later on that day.

He is introduced to his trainer, a calm and professional man named Kobori that Kise can tell will be someone he gets along with easily. He visits Kiyoshi and Kuroko once again for a formal check-up on his wings and physical condition. To his disappointment, he doesn’t run into any of the Miracles, even when moving his belongings into his new room. 

Yet, throughout every second of the day, he wears a bright smile on his face because it’s the start of a new page in his life. He’s finally about to have the life he’s dreamed of that composed of the exhilarating and new experience of flying competitively while simultaneously being able to continue a career he’s well-versed in and grown to love with time. 

\-----

When the havoc that comes with entering the GoM dies down and Kise settles into a pattern, he finally finds time to reschedule the coffee date with Kasamatsu. 

The place they always go to is a quaint little café that primarily caters to students from Kasamatsu’s university who are too busy working on their thesis to bother Kise even if they recognized him. He quickly scans the place, discovers that he’s arrived first and takes the responsibility of ordering their regulars (a chai latte with soy milk and extra cinnamon + a cappuccino for here, please). 

The barista working is a long-time friend of the two of them - having been part of Kasamatsu’s graduating class last year. When they’d met him here the first time, Moriyama declared that girls always dream of having a coffee shop romance. Kise asks how many hearts Moriyama has drawn on paper cups by now and he groans that it’s been too many to still be single. The two chat casually as Kise pays for his drinks before Moriyama has to serve the next customer in line. 

Bringing the drinks to their usual table far away from the window, Kise sips on his as he waits, checking up on social media. His announcement to stop pursuing a career in modelling was devastating to his fans and the general public has been bombarding him with questions as to why Kise has been so secretive with the reason. Akashi had informed Kise to be, saying an interview was set up with a popular talk show where he will be able to perform the “big reveal”. 

Kasamatsu shows up about five minutes late, setting his guitar case down with a thud and sighing as he sinks into his seat. “Sorry, Kise, the lesson with this student dragged out longer than I thought it would.” 

“No problem!” Kise chirps, “is she cute?”

“She’s eight,” Kasamatsu deadpans.

Kise bursts out laughing. “Oops, my bad, my bad. I know you can’t properly tutor a girl your age anyway, you’d probably just drop your guitar!”

“Shut up before I make you!” 

He only laughs harder at the red flush across the other’s cheeks as he angrily chugs down his drink. 

“Shit. Burnt my tongue,” Kasamatsu winces as he slams the cup down and Kise has to stop the threat of erupting in laughter once more. “Anyway, I suppose you’re going to tell me what’s up with you quitting modelling?” 

“Tune in at 8 on Channel 23 to watch Exclusive Interview with Kise Ryouta and find out with everyone else! ”

Kasamatsu sends him a withering glare and Kise figures he should give it up. He had been planning to tell Kasamatsu today, anyway. 

“Actually… I learned how to fly!” He beams at his former upperclassman who now looks at him in exasperated disbelief. 

“Kise, I’m serious.”

“No, _I’m_ serious, Kasamatsu!” 

“You are.”

“Yeah. I am.” 

“You’re not kidding with me?”

“No.”

“Holy shit.”

“I know! It gets better!” Kise’s practically bouncing in his seat, spurred on by the look of awe on his friend’s face. However, he lowers his voice to a hushed whisper, “I’m part of the Generation of Miracles now.” 

Kasamatsu (understandably) chokes on his coffee and demands to know how it happened when he recovers. Kise recounts the whole story from the top - when Aomine stole his popsicle. Kasamatsu listens intently throughout the whole thing and has a smile on his face when Kise finishes. They discuss the flying situation a bit more, then Kise asks about an update on Kasamatsu’s life and their meeting passes on like any other. 

They stand to say goodbye and Kise hugs Kasamatsu, unsure of how long it will be until he sees him again. The other surprises him by not pushing him off.

“I’m happy for you, Kise. That you’ve found something you really love to do.” 

“Thank you,” Kise thinks he’s really lucky for having found such a good friend. “You know, both of the managers for the Generation of Miracles are really cute, I can totally introduce you.”

Kasamatsu punches Kise in the stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i started this fic when s3 started and now s3 has long since ended. Oops
> 
> the thing about this fic is that i keep writing it in snippets and trying to tie it all together is hard so sorry if it's choppy??? anyway there's like 0 aokise interaction in this bc i have all those scenes saved up for the next chapt which hopefully won't take me as long to post. 
> 
> http://sousuckit.tumblr.com


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> some short snippets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was working on schoolwork when i saw the file for this fic and i just felt so guilty of abandoning it when i had already originally written up an ending for it and everything. i really tried to finish this and i tried for a week, but i think im just too far out of the knb fandom at this point to feel the same passion for it as a i did while drafting this fic up. i still love aokise so much but i didnt want anything to be lackluster if i were to write them, so i decided to just post what i had left of what i wrote months ago. 
> 
> i had only planned small snippets, so this chapter is not really a Complete ending and everything seems really disconnected - not to mention a whole gap of development missing in the middle. but i hope that if theres just a few people out there that still care for this story and enjoyed it - that you can accept this too as well as my apology.

Time passes quickly as Kise develops a routine, juggling intense training with a few photoshoots scattered throughout the months. After the announcement about his recruitment reached the public, his popularity had skyrocketed even past what it had been before. There isn’t a day where the muscles around his wings aren’t sore and each night, sleep overtakes him within the first few minutes of falling into bed.

His relationships with the rest of the team improve along his skills. Breaks are spent admiring fashion magazines with Momoi or cooing at Kagami and Kuroko’s newly established couple status. He learns not to bother Midorima unless he’s desperate for homework help, lest he receive a lucky item to the head. Any time with Murasakibara proves to be dangerous to his model figure because while Kise works out enough to eat portions much larger than the average boy his age, the sheer number of calories Murasakibara intakes is atrocious. And Akashi, well, let’s just say Kise isn’t a large fan of shogi and submission.

As for Aomine, Kise supposes he’s the closest to him. Part of the reason for his exhaustion were the countless one-on-ones he demanded from Aomine almost daily. He hardly (never) wins, but it only sets a goal for him and spurs him on. And maybe, just a little, Aomine’s sheer presence motivates him. It’s hard not to get fond of a person when so much time is spent with them, and for Kise, a warm feeling was starting to bloom across his chest every time he pondered over any small detail of Aomine for too long.The faux grouchiness Aomine puts on each time he whines  for him is plain endearing. The fact that Aomine still never fails to give in when it came to Kise - whether it be a race, a bite of food, a companion to shop with - makes Kise feel so special.

And finally, the way those navy eyes light up with fire during a race, shining so bright they seem to glow azure sends electric shocks through Kise’s body.

 

\----

 

They’re spread out on a random rooftop together after an exhilarating race. It’s quiet, both of them still catching their breath, and Kise keeps catching himself glancing over to admire Aomine’s profile. Worried about being caught, he casts his gaze down.

 Kise sees his golden feathers blending into Aomine’s and is struck with an image of the sun colliding with the night sky. He thinks about what an unparalleled sight it would be, a one in a million chance of ever happening and he is reminded of his feelings towards Aomine and how their first chance encounter would have never happened if a group of girls hadn’t stopped him in the streets that particular day, if he hadn’t craved the cold ramune flavoured popsicle treat due to the blazing heat and if Aomine hadn’t felt the need to steal that cold sensation on his tongue for himself.

 “Oi, Kise, move over. I wanna stretch out my wings more and yours are in the way.”

 Kise closes his eyes, fees the warmth of the setting sun against his eyelids and wonders if only it would stay in the sky a little longer and settle in a canvas of midnight blue. But that isn’t how things work. Day and night are infinitely separate, each arriving only to barely catch the tail as the other leaves.

 “Aominecchi should just move over himself!” Kise complains lightheartedly as he still puts more distance between himself and Aomine, watching their feathers untangle.

 

\----

 

To Kise’s crushing disappointment, his first official race does not end with a gold medal around his neck. He blinks back tears as he’s on the podium, trying to reassure himself that silver is definitely nothing to scoff at - especially at an international competition.

However, as he poses for photos along with the other Miracles, he can’t help but notice the glint of gold off each of their chests. He laughs the tears off as tears of joy - saying he’s just overwhelmed. He doesn’t know if any of them buys it. He doubts Aomine does - so he avoids him.

_“The Generation of Miracles aren’t accustomed to earning anything but gold.”_

He remembers the words of Akashi during their first encounter as he glares down at the medal clutched in his hand that night.

Kise visits Akashi with his heart in his throat, ready to beg for another chance to show them all exactly what he was capable of. He finds out he doesn’t need to.

“Once you’ve experienced loss, your desire to strive for victory strengthens,” Akashi says. “My words before were to motivate you. You’ve already exceeded what was expected of you within a year, Kise.”

He hangs up his silver medal before bed that day; looking at it no longer leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

 

\----

 

“You got this for me?” Kise excitedly squeals out as he holds onto the bouquet of flowers Aomine had shoved into his arms the morning after.

“It wasn’t my idea. Satsuki said you looked sad ‘cause you only got second and that I should try and comfort you or some shit, even though I told her that it’s not even a big deal since that was only your first race, so it makes sense, y’know,” Aomine grumbles out, eyes darting to the side. Kise can tell he’s nervous and he grins, masking it by pretending to smell the flowers. “I didn’t even want to get you anything.”

“So then why did you?” Kise teases Aomine, rather enjoying watching his friend squirm.

“Because I was out getting food ‘cause Kagami’s a fucking pig and I saw a stand selling these so I just bought one.”

“But why?” Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but Kise wants to hear Aomine say he cares about him.

“Because shut up.” Kise laughs at the immature response and Aomine glares at him. “The fuck are you laughing at, are you not even going to thank me? I’ll just take these back then.” He makes a grab for the bouquet in Kise’s hands.

“No, they’re mine!” Kise shrieks and before long, they’re wrestling on the ground for the bouquet. He senses fingers on his side, sees the evil smile on Aomine’s face and he knows it before he feels it that he’s being tickled. Tears spring up in his eyes and between gasps for air, he screams, “thank you, Aominecchi, thank you! Now stop! Stop!”

In the end, Aomine lets him go and Kise pauses to catch his breath, looking at the utterly destroyed flowers scattered across the floor. Surprisingly, he doesn’t feel torn up about it and he knows it’s because that moment with Aomine had cheered him up a million times more than the bouquet would have.

As if sensing his heightened spirits, Aomine smirks at him and says, “Wanna race?”

Kise perks up immediately and then pouts playfully, “Only if I get a head start.”

“Fine, sometimes I prefer watching you from behind, anyway.”

“Aominecchi!”

Aomine laughs and launches into the air. “Just kidding, winning still beats even your ass.”

Red-faced, Kise rises up to meet him and they zoom off across the sky.

 

\----

 

“What are we?” Kise voices one day, staring up at the ceiling as Aomine lays beside him, flipping through a gravure magazine.

“Talking, featherless chickens or some shit.”

Kise chooses to ignore just how completely stupid that answer was and frowns, black dots starting to scatter across his vision from looking into the light too long. “No, what are _we,_ Aominecchi?”

“Just fucking repeating the question isn’t going to make me understand it more,” comes the irritated response as Aomine shuts his magazine and sits up, glancing over at Kise. The blond blinks a couple of times and makes eye contact with the other, a frustrated sigh escaping his lips.

He decides to sit up as well, to be level with Aomine in height for when he finally thinks it’s a good time. Honestly, he’s starting to believe there’s never actually going be a good time and right now, he’s in a rather funny mood and before Kise can stop himself, what he’s been dying to say for months is out in the open in one giant ramble.

“I meant, what’s our relationship? Are we just friends or what? Because I like you, Aominecchi, and I keep receiving mixed signals and it drives me crazy! One moment, I’m almost fooled into thinking we’re already a couple and then within the next couple of minutes, you’re completely ignoring me and I’m starting to think you just like to tease me and that maybe this is just how you act with all your friends and-“

Suddenly, Kise feels a large palm against the back of his head and he gasps as he feels Aomine’s chapped lips against his. Kise’s no amateur to the whole kissing scene, but he’s trying to come to terms that oh god, this is real and not some dream he’s having and everything’s sloppy, too rushed, too rough as both of them try to condense months of suppressed feelings into one kiss, but despite it all, it’s perfect.

He’s flushed and lightheaded when Aomine pulls away.

“You really are stupid if you think you’re not special to me,” Aomine smiles – the kind where his eyes are all soft and Kise’s heart skips a beat. He wants to laugh and cry at the same time – so he does, because he can’t control his emotions right now and for once, Aomine doesn’t make fun of him it for it.

“Plus, you don’t hear me complimenting Kagami’s ass.”

Kise flops down onto his back and groans, because he doesn’t know why he bothered expecting anything more romantic out of Aomine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not really proofread. 
> 
> again sorry, and hope that this little bit of what i can offer as a last chapter is alright.


End file.
